


Hers

by ConfessedGeek



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: BAMF Marco, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Slightlyagedcharacters, The Feels are Strong, starco
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-06
Updated: 2018-11-19
Packaged: 2019-08-19 18:58:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16540277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ConfessedGeek/pseuds/ConfessedGeek
Summary: Because while Marco Diaz has always been hers, she’s his far more.*Edited and ending changed.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing but my feels for the show Star verses The Forces of Evil and this ship.

 

He’s hers.

Most would probably think that’s obvious, given everything they’ve been through together. But the thing is, she had decided it from the instant he fought with her against creatures he didn’t know or understand despite having been irritated by her very presence just seconds earlier.

Oh, and it had been _glorious_ how he dove into the fray. Kicking, punching and jumping at Ludo’s men with devastating effectiveness. It had caught her off guard. Humans were fragile from what she knew then. Not weak, no, because even though they were fragile it had been acknowledged that some were surprising durable during highly breakable scenarios. However, biologically speaking, their bodies wore down faster than Mewmans without any magic of any sort to help sustain them.

So it was awe inspiring to see him fighting when just hours before her magic had drove him from his home; his human body taking down the monsters easily without need for magic. She had thought him fearless.

As she got to know Marco more though, she realized that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Marco was terrified of pretty much all of it. Terrified of the monsters, of what they can do. Scared of what could happen to the people he cares about if they ever got caught in the crossfire. (Scared for her, he had started admitting less than a month into a friendship after a particularly rough fight. His hands pulling at the fabric of her dress as he held her close, breathing her in.)

He’s still scared even now with sixteen years of training to help along with more knowledge of her world. But instead of locking his fear away, he walks hand-in-hand with it into battle after battle. Uses his intuition to know how to best have her back, or to even stop threats before they happen.

It’s WAY more cool than being fearless and is an ability that could easily have him become one of Mewni’s most famous warriors. (Her dad hadn’t really been joking about making him a knight, he had admitted as much to her, though she had a sneaking suspicion Marco knew it as well.)

Instead, he stays as her squire. A position without much glory or pay that as of late has become more dangerous than any other knight’s job in Mewni perhaps _ever,_ made more so because Marco is _human_ and all the training in the world can’t get rid of the fact that biologically his body’s much easier to break into a million pieces.

She has nightmares sometimes about just that: watching Marco as he’s ripped apart by something she’s too weak to stop. _Helpless_ to do _nothing_ but listen to his _screams_ as his hoodie stains a darker red. The grueling violence of those however are _nothing_  compared to the ones where he floats listlessly in the destruction of Meteora forever, or where he is still _lifeless_ when everyone else comes back.

Her heart nearly bursts with relief each time he shakes her awake, vibrant _alive_ brown eyes fixated on her in concern. “It’s okay Star. You’re okay.”

Relief, with the price of dark knowledge.

She has already given her wand up to save him, something that would have destroyed years of family history and put the Butterfly’s power at a huge risk. To avenge him, she would tear through Mewni in such a way that Meteora’s fury would look like a pathetic temper-tantrum until she found those responsible and when she did...

Nothing in any world would be able to save them.

It’s terrifying how she accepts this. How the images of her grief and rage compare nothing to the cold glassiness of dream _(memory)_ Marco’s eyes; how _satisfaction and blood-lust_ turns her blood hot when those to blame are screaming for mercy...

Because while Marco Diaz has always been hers, she’s _his_ far more.

It’s almost funny, really. Marco could easily get what so many people have wanted without even having to ask. She, Princess Star Butterfly of Mewni who answers to no-one, would give up all her power and her Kingdom if it meant keeping _him._

_And he doesn’t even know._

Sometimes, she lets herself think he does when he clings to her like a lifeline after she wakes him from his own nightmares. Allows the hope that he’s thinking _‘you’re mine,’_ when he pulls her into bed to wrap himself around her like a blanket so that she can feel his heartbeat.

Then she pushes it aside, because hoping doesn’t make it true. Neither do unexplained kisses in a photo-booth.

(Even really amazing ones)

Still, even if he doesn’t know that he practically holds her heart and soul in his human hands, he has to understand at the very least that she would be devastated if anything happened to him. Yet, he keeps putting himself on the line, and while danger and life-threatening situations are nothing new, him risking his life where it doesn’t _need to be_ to save her is. It’s been driving her crazy, so much so that sometimes she wishes he could _just be_ afraid and not stupidly brave.

Every time she tells him as much she would only get a sincere smile, “I’m your squire, Star. It’s my duty.”

_Duty._ How she despises that word, and the more she hears that excuse the harder it is for her to bite back the words clawing up her throat in fury. _‘I’d loose myself if you died Marco Diaz, don’t you understand?’_ Lately, her grasp of control has become brittle enough that she thinks he sees it in her eyes when his smile fades just a bit around the edges; those brown eyes becoming much more intense.

Still, he refuses to cut down on his unnecessary and damn near suicidal heroics so she decides to up her own. Squire or not, she’s the princess damn it and no matter what he says he’s _hers_ to protect. She came to his world, to his home bringing magic and madness into it so he’s _hers_ to take care of. Not the other way around.

He doesn’t say anything about it for the first while, merely fixing her with puzzled looks when she did something just a _trifle_ more reckless than usual to get him out of trouble. As time goes on though, with her heroics diving more to suicidal levels, she gets the satisfaction of seeing her own anger reflected in Marco’s expression...

But despite what most would think, Marco has always had a shorter leash on his feelings than her, and he tends to let it go at unexpected times. “What are you doing Star?” He demands furiously, pulling her from the ground where she’d fallen after taking a hit and swinging her around so that she could deliver a kick to one of the rebel monsters.

Landing on her feet, she copies the smile he usually gave her almost perfectly, speaking innocently. “I’m doing my _duty_ as the princess of Mewni, keeping my people safe no matter what.” A rainbow blast punctuates her statement, hitting three more enemies squarely in their chests.

Punching another in the face, Marco turns to face her in disbelief. “Yeah, but you can’t really keep on keeping them safe if you end up really hurting yourself Star.

“Oh you think so!” Star exclaims with false cheer, taking out several more with a well-aimed Narwell blast as she somersaulted through the air. Landing on her feet once more, she sends Marco a dark look: “Funny, you don’t seem to have the same logic when you nearly kill yourself doing stupid heroics.”

“Stupid heroics...” Marco blurts out, ducking and rolling to dodge the giant fist that was about to smash  him into a pancake. “You’re doing this to get back at me for saving you?!”

“No,” Star grunts out, sweat gathering along her hairline as she struggles to hold down the Octopus like monster fighting against her. “I’m doing it to stop you from dying prematurely due to your stupid need to be a hero.”

“I’m not trying to be a hero! I’m trying to do my job!”  Marco grouses, finishing off his bad-guy with a kick that packed more viciousness than usual to his groin. Back-flipping over, he comes next to her to help hold down the octopus, trying to twist its arms into knots as he adds on heatedly, “And I don’t get why you’re making it so hard for me lately! Are you that desperate to prove you don’t need me?”

Star frowns, “Wha...I never said that!”

“You’ve been implying it.” Marco snaps, pulling on the tentacle with renewed viciousness.

“No – I...” Star glowers at him, her teeth grinding together so hard it hurt, “UGH! You know what FINE that’s exactly why I’m doing it. Congratulations Marco Diaz, you figured out my secret! But you know what, you don’t get to be angry at me because you didn’t need me first.”

Brown eyes widen, “What...”

“Sixteen years fighting in Hekapoo’s dimension? Hello, ringing any bells?” Star growls, her nails digging into the tentacle in her hands.

“Hey could you loosen the...OW OW!”  Ignoring the monster’s yelps, Marco and Star glare each other down unaware of the audience of injured but intrigued minions around them. 

Star’s grip tightens, her voice growing louder:  “You almost didn’t even come back.”

_“Almost,”_ Marco grits out, “I did though Star! Even if I hadn’t you still would’ve had a chance of visiting me, unlike when you actually _died_ because you let yourself get blown up by the whispering spell!”

At this, Star releases the now whimpering monster and marches over to Marco the same second he stands. Getting in his face, she jabs a finger at his stomach “It was the only way to save my kingdom that wouldn’t result in more people dying!”

“Oh really, it was the _only way.”_ Marco throws his hands in the air, gasping dramatically before shoving her hand away. _“_ Wait, no it wasn’t, you just rushed in _without thinking!_ Like _ALWAYS!”_

Stubbornly ignoring the sudden blurriness of her vision, Star tightens her fists at her side as she yells back. “If I didn’t rush in, you would be dead!”

“Good!” He snaps, making her eyes widen as she feels her heart splitting into millions of fragile pieces... “Better me than you.”

Her heart shatters, she can practically feel the pieces cutting up her insides as the tears begin to stream down her cheeks.  Through the blurriness she can see Marco’s expression morph into one of shock then horror. He steps forward but she stumbles back, weak, broken laughter escaping her:  “You still don’t get it Diaz...how can you not get it?”

“Star...” Marco’s voice is beautifully soft and she hates, _hates_ how much she wants just follow it back into his arms so that they can pretend nothing happened...

Even though everything has.

“Star, I...”

Suddenly, Marco is flying back – hitting the ground some thirty feet away with a loud **_THUD._** Star’s tears almost instantly dry up, ignoring the sounds of monsters yelling something about “Letting them solve their issues” as she sprints towards him – her throat closing when he doesn’t stand. _“MARCOOO!”_

Then she’s kicking at air, blue eyes meeting large yellow ones that glare down at her with vicious satisfaction as the hand wrapped around her body begins to _squeeze._ “Where’s your power now little princess?”  It mocks as her struggles quickly weaken in it’s grasp – her breath barely managing to come out in wheezes as her vision darkens...

**_“STAR!”_ **

The terrified, _pained_ enraged shout drowns out all other noise for a split instant...

Then, there’s chaos.

She feels, rather than sees the monster holding her lurching forward as it’s hit causing it to release her so that she tumbles to the ground. Gasping for breath, she props herself on her hands before letting out a yelp as she quickly rolls out of the way of the monster’s huge feet. Once Star’s sure she’s far enough away, she gives her head a rough shake to clear the remaining black spots in her vision as she looks up to see what she’s dealing with.

Or, rather, what the monster is dealing with.

Slack-jawed, she watches the large monster stomp in circles as he tries to bat Marco off him as the karate-kid delivers furious kicks and punches at various parts of its body to the point where Star could see large yellow bruises appearing on it’s blue skin.

But bruises are nothing compared to the blood that comes gushing out when Marco leaps on the monster’s head to jab his fist directly into it’s open eye. Nothing, to the echoing cracking of bones when he then body-checks it into a pile of sharp rocks...

 Nothing to his continuing relentless attacks on the clearly beaten creature despite his own bloodies fists and the tears streaming down his face...

 “Marco.” Star whispers, barely able to use her voice as she stumbles to him.

 He doesn’t stop.

 She picks up her pace, voice rising unsteadily “Marco!”

He doesn’t stop.

_“Marco!”_ She screams, latching onto his arm as he pulls it back again.

 He looks up at her, hardened features covered in dust, tears and blood instantly softening as soon as his brown eyes met hers. “Star,” He murmurs, pulling his hand from her only to place both on her cheeks – eyes frantically flickering over her. She can feel the blood on them as he tilts her head gently in each direction, her nose wrinkling just a bit at the strong scent of copper. Marco’s hands are warm though; his pretty brown eyes filled with so many emotions focused so intensely on her that she finds it hard to breathe again. He glances down at her arms where large bruises are beginning to show, letting out a long gust of air through his nose that seems to do little to stop the shadow from passing over his eyes again.

 “Hey,” Star whispers redirecting his eyes to hers. She smiles softly, placing one of her hands over his.

 "He hurt you.” His voice is cracked – _wrong_ and she wants to _fix it_ but isn't sure she _can._

She tries, dark weary laughter escaping her, “Yeah, well you hurt him more.” She tilts her head over to the passed out monster in question, not missing the rage that settles over Marco’s expression for a brief second.

“Still not enough.” He growls out, brown orbs meeting hers again steadily. Her mouth feels very dry all of the sudden, and there’s this weird warmth she can feel in her stomach that she sometimes feels when Marco did weird (hot) things like this but she could never name it.

Licking her lips, she grasps his hand so that she can look at the damage, “It’s going to have to be for now.” she hesitates for a second, then presses a brief kiss to each knuckle – uncaring of the blood she can taste or his quiet intake of breath. “I don’t want you hurting yourself more.”

There’s a lull where every passing millisecond there’s this unnameable tension in this bubble they made for themselves that just seems to keep building.

“Star....”

“Yes Marco?” She replies, looking up through her bangs to see him _right there_ their noses only a few millimeters from brushing, his brown eyes soft and... _shiny._ “M-Marco?” she wants to hit herself for stammering, for the wave of warmth that crashes into her gut because this is _normal_ for them and she _really_ needs to stop reading into things...

“Star,” his soft whisper draws her from her thoughts, breath catching at the undeniable fondness etched in every line of his face. He licks his lips, his free hand coming up to cup her cheek, “I’m sorry about earlier. I – I think we were both trying to do the same thing.”

“Yeah,” she agrees with a light laugh, pressing their entwined hands against his chest while her other feels his heartbeat. “I’m sorry too.”

If possible, his voice gets softer, “Star.”

“Yes Marco?”

He winds some of her hair around his fingers gently, his eyes flickering to the golden strands.  “Please be more careful.”

“Only if you will be,” She responds instinctively, her hand twisting into the material of his hoodie – blue eyes fierce. When he says nothing, eyes still focused on her hair, she gives a hard tug at the hoodie so that they are nose-to-nose, keeping a tight grip so that he won’t notice her body shaking. “I mean it, Diaz. No more stupid heroics!”

A slight smile tugs up his mouth at that, lifting his adorable mole, “Of course, my Queen.”

Her lips part, wordless for a moment before her go-to response begins spilling from them: “Don’t call me-”

Chapped lips press against her forehead gently, silencing her.  “Alright, my shining Star.”

Blue eyes widen, then shine as a shy smile tugs up her lips, “You’re such a sap, Diaz.”

“I know.” He breathes out, his head resting on hers as she leans onto his chest. “I know.”

They stay there for awhile, content in each others presence, until Star hears some weird noises in the background. Blue eyes opening, she shifts her position so that she can peak over Marco’s shoulder without leaving his embrace. “Marco?” She whispers, eyes wide.

He hums, the sound going through her pleasantly.“Yeah Star?”

“The rebels are staring at us.” She replies, keeping eyes on said rebels.

A puff of breath fluffs her hair, and to her disbelief he almost sounds amused. “I know.”

“And you’re okay with them seeing our...” She hesitates, cheeks flushing as she struggles to find the right description for _this_. “Personal conversation?”

He hums again, thoughtful “Not really. But they’re not attacking, so I can’t complain.”

“But they’re _crying.”_ Star hisses in growing distress when one rebel even takes out a tissue to blow their nose loudly. _“Why are they doing that?”_

“I guess, they have feelings too?” Marco offers somewhat cheekily making Star whack his chest. “Hey!”

Smirking at Marco’s grumbling (and his tightening rather than loosening grip) Star turns her gaze back on the rebels to see them still on her. Smile falling, with great reluctance she lets go of Marco’s hand so she can tug at his hoodie with both of hers. “Seriously, it’s getting _creeeepy._ ”

She feels Marco lift his head, her eyes glancing up at his face as he twists to look. Dark eyes widen in alarm, his body tensing slightly, “It’s like they’re not even _blinking._ ”

They lock eyes, blue to brown.

“Pizza, clean-up once we get far, far away from here.” They say in near sync before scrambling to their feet to sprint back to the palace, their hands entwining once more.


	2. His

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She’s reckless, ridiculous, a danger-magnet, a mess-in-a-dress with a heart made of pure gold that nearly causes his own heart to give out daily -
> 
> Because it’s hers.
> 
> It’s hers, and she doesn’t – can’t—know how much it is.

She’s impossible.

One would think that obvious, as she’s a princess with a magic wand from another dimension who blasted onto Earth, into his life with sparkling rainbow blasts and a wide infectious smile. However, that is hardly the reason why he labels her as such. She’s also reckless, _ridiculous,_ a danger-magnet, a mess-in-a-dress with a heart made of pure _gold_ that nearly causes his own heart to give out _daily -_

Because it’s _hers._

It’s hers, and she doesn’t – _can’t—_ know how much it is.

He hadn’t even begun realizing it himself until he thought she was gone forever, had felt something inside him _break_ leaving emptiness behind. The agony had nearly brought him to his knees – had him biting his tongue bloody so he wouldn’t give Toffee the satisfaction of hearing the cries, howls, _whimpers_ that wanted to get out. He wasn’t _whole_ anymore something told him as he clutched his chest as if that would somehow ease how badly the emptiness hurt – the way emptiness shouldn’t hurt.

Even the cold, frothing _fury_ that flooded his veins when he looked up to see Toffee striding away in his _stupid_ suit without care couldn’t make it go away for even a _second._ It only gave him the power to walk forward on shaking _numb_ legs, his hands curled into fists so tight his nails drew blood from his palm.

Marco wanted to tear the lizard apart with his bare hands. Wanted to see the anguish he felt reflected in the vile creature’s eyes if only for a _millisecond._ Wanted him _away_ from Mewni by any means because that’s what she d – why she was _gone._

He wanted -

_He wanted -_

The tears he had been managing to hold back with his rage flooded his eyes when his fist went straight through where Toffee’s heart should’ve been and the lizard didn’t even _twitch_.

_He failed._

Marco barely felt it when he slammed into the stone; barely felt _anything_ even when he tried to help Moon fix the pieces of the star -

His hope had died with _her._

Then Star came from the sky in a burst of glorious golden light that blasted the emptiness away as it did with Toffee. He could _breathe._

Clinging to her, breathing her in, he had vowed to never let anything happen to her.

But not long after he had just _left._ He had his reasons of course, _good_ reasons. His parents were waiting for him after all along with Jackie, his friends, and he couldn’t just _leave_ them...

Of course, he ignored the voice that told him he had _already_ left them to go after the girl with bright eyes and a maddening habit of looking for trouble. Dismissed the fact that he could’ve returned to Earth sooner to see them but had stayed to help her rebuild her destroyed kingdom. But he found it much harder to drown the voice out when he hesitated at the portal, his eyes drinking her in, committing her features to memory. _‘Tell her you’ll help her find your hoodie. Tell River you’ll take him up on his offer now. Damn it Diaz, say something!’_

He had opened his mouth, breath catching at the way he looked up at him through her golden bangs. His heart thumped almost painfully against his chest... “Bye.”

_‘Some knight you are.’_ The voice said snidely as he turned jerkily, unable to look back.

He removed his cape as soon as he entered his room, the portal closing behind him.

* * *

The first day back had passed slowly, almost painfully so as Marco tried to keep himself occupied without going out. His mom had asked why he didn’t call any of his friends or Jackie however after he shrugged and said he was tired she dropped it, although not without exchanging a look with his dad.

Later in that evening, a star shaped box flew through his front door carrying familiar red fabric.

Grinning, he had quickly put it on snuggling into the familiar warmth as he breathed in the clean scent...the familiar scent. His eyes widened, taking in another breath to make sure he hadn’t imagined it...

He hadn’t.

In the red cotton fibres, the scent of Star’s favourite cherry candy mixed with her lightly scented shampoo was ingrained.

For _days_ he wore the hoodie around the house, taking sniffs whenever his parents weren’t paying attention because he _knew_ if they saw they would exchange _looks_ like they always did when he held Star’s hand or smiled at her antics when she wasn’t looking.

Like it was such a _big deal_ that he did things any half decent friend would do.

While the explanation held solid for his parents, even he had doubts when he kept up the secrecy when Jackie finally came over.

Not that it stayed secret for long.

“Um – Marco?” His girlfriend had drawn out, eyebrows furrowed in puzzlement as she stared at him mid-sniff in his kitchen.

He had come to his senses, quickly releasing the hoodie and letting out a weak laugh, “Hi Jackie!”

“Why are you smelling your hoodie?” She asked carefully, leaning against the counter

“Uh...” He laughed, rubbing at the back of his neck. “My mom just got a new detergent and it smells _really_ great!” He blurted out finally, mentally applauding himself for the plausible excuse.

Her aquamarine eyes had lit up as she pushed off the counter, walking over. “Oh really? You actually washed that thing?! Can I have a smell?”

“O-of course!” He agreed hastily, not sure what else to do as she stopped mere inches from him and took a whiff.

“Huh,” light blonde eyebrows furrowed again, a slight frown tugging at her lips. “It smells kind of familiar -”

Laughing awkwardly, Marco took a step back from her. “Haha really? That’s weird. What did you want to do today?”

Jackie blinked, and Marco had felt sweat gathering at his forehead. To his relief a second later she shook her head, smiling slightly: “Well, okay. I was thinking we could go to the skate-park? I can teach you some more moves.”

He smiled, eyes soft “Yeah of course! Let me grab my stuff!” He had raced to his room, quickly rummaging through his closet to pull out the spare helmet and knee-guards Jackie had lent him. Deciding to forgo the package of band-aids on his desk, he was about to leave when something occurred to him

If he went skateboarding, he would probably fall. If he fell then his hoodie would get covered with dirt, dust and probably grass – and even if he managed to get past his mom from seeing it, the smell of grass was especially potent, which meant his hoodie wouldn’t smell like Star anymore.

His stomach sank, eyes glancing down at the red fabric then to his still open closet.

He shook his head: _‘Get a grip Diaz’._ He took a step towards the door, then another...

Dropping the stuff on his bed, he ran back to the closet where he carefully removed his hoodie to put it on a hanger set apart from his spares. Brushing a hand against it, he had smiled about to grab a different one when he noticed a spot of blue in the sea of red.

Jackie had been confused when he came down in the cape at first, then laughed when he told her he thought it would be epic to see it blowing in the wind as they skate-boarded. They had fun that day, really they had – and when they finally sat down to eat, he had wanted her to know why he was away for so long.

Granted, she probably got the point the first time.

* * *

Marco wasn’t as surprised or as upset as he should’ve been when Jackie broke up with him, though that was probably because deep-down he had known for a while that he wasn’t the boyfriend she clearly deserved.

There had been a pain in his chest though, when Star didn’t seem to want to be anywhere near him once he found her again. The ache still lingered even after he was made her squire, growing a little every time he saw her and Tom doing something coupley. He had tried to ignore it – had used the various duties that he took upon as her squire to distract himself. It had worked too, better than he hoped. His heart sped up with every smile she gave him nowadays, so what? He had to stop the portals. She looked beautiful in that dress at River’s party, so what? He had to keep guard.

So what if when he saw her crumpling just a bit under all the pressure she had on her shoulders he pulled her in his arms without the intent of ever letting go? It was his _job_ to protect her, even from the terrible thoughts that sometimes entered her head not only as her squire but as her _friend._ Her _best-friend._

That was the real reason he had really come to Mewni, after all. To be there for her, no matter what.

Then the photo-booth incident happened.

They had finally talked about her confession that they had refused to address since she had run out from him on that day that seemed so long ago. Things were going to be okay, _they_ were going to be okay...

She was _stunning_ in her dinosaur dress smiling sincerely at the camera, and he was hyper-aware of the brush of her bare arm against his. So what? He could handle it.

Her big, pretty blue eyes slid over to him, her smile becoming shy as their eyes met.

His heart stuttered. His breath caught in his lungs.

He would have loved to be able to say that his brain had shut down, that he hadn’t realized what he was doing when he stepped closer, his hands reaching out to grasp her shoulders gently. Would have welcomed the excuse with undying gratitude.

But his brain had worked. Questions about how soft her lips might be and if she would taste like those cherry candies she loved so much racing through as he carefully closed the distance between them.

(He also wondered if he was imagining things when her breath hitched and her head tilted upwards, just a bit.)

It was only when he pressed his lips to her very soft ones that those thoughts died, replaced with only comforting warmth and the steady press of her hands on his wrists. Not even the awkwardness and intestine-knotting guilt afterwards could diminish the memory of those emotions, no matter how much he wished they would sometimes.

Because despite his own wishes, the reality was that Star wasn’t really _his._ Wasn’t really anyone’s. Like her namesake, she was magnificent; a shinning light that touched everyone’s lives. Too beautiful, too far out to touch.

(That didn’t mean he wouldn’t hold her when she needed him too. Or that she wasn’t _his_ to protect regardless.)

* * *

After the whole Meteora disaster he was more determined than ever to keep the promise he’d made to himself what felt like so long ago. So, he trained more, read books about the different species on Mewni checked out the maps of her country to see who lived where and brushed up on the various languages he had learned while in Hekapoo’s dimension.

He made _sure_ he was less of a liability in their fights so that Star could focus on keeping herself safe.

She noticed, of course. He honestly hadn’t expected her not to. But Marco didn’t understand the flash of anger in her blue eyes that he started noticing whenever he got just a little _too_ careless which resulted in a trip to Mewni’s medical center. He didn’t understand the hugs that seemed tighter than usual or the more frequent orders (which he usually ignored) to _stand back_ while she handled things.

He didn’t understand because this was still how they did things, how they’ve _always_ done things. They fight bad-guys, maybe get a few scratches, sometimes worse but then get up and do it again. And they did it _together_. But more and more, it seemed like she was trying to do everything herself despite the pressure already on her shoulders.

It got under his skin, he can’t deny. However, he probably would have been able to brush it off with only some mild irritation – if she hadn’t started doing her absolute damn hardest to undermine his efforts into keeping her safe.

Her recklessness, what had been somewhat tamed due to her new responsibilities compared to when they first met, skyrocketed to levels that made him have near stokes _hourly_. He’d be fighting a rebel, get a scratch and she’d be _there_ tackling the enemy down with her _bare_ _hands_ no magic in sight.

It made it hard for him to focus. Made him loose _sleep_ from more frequent nightmares of her brilliant light going out – this time for good.

Today, seeing her take a hit he could’ve _blocked_ if she had given him the _chance,_ he couldn’t keep quiet any longer.

He wasn’t expecting the hurricane of emotions that flashed across her face, or the cutting _accusing_ words that burned like embers before they caught fire. Then they did, fueled by his own fury _annoyance pain concern_ that had been building up for over a year. Her responding words and actions provided more kindle, making him burn hotter and hotter to the point where he almost _exploded_ …

_‘I want you safe, Star! Is that so much to ask?! I want you safe and whole and happy. I **need** you to be, because if you aren’t, I’ll be better off dead, do you understand?!’_

Only her tears stopped the flames from swallowing him whole, dousing them entirely when she stumbled _away_ from him her hands pressed her chest, eyes squeezed shut as if in _pain._

The laugh that had escaped her lips wasn’t even a shadow of her real one, terrifying him. _“You still don’t get it Diaz…how can you not get it?”_

Oh no. No, no, no.

What had he missed? _How_ did he miss it, when whatever it was so clearly tore her up inside?

He tried to remember what he said before she got like this, memories hazy from the power of his emotions.

_“Better me than you.”_

 Something clicked.

 ' _Oh._

_Oh god Star._

_I’m such an idiot.'_

Marco reached for her, desperate to fix this - to _help her…_

Only to be tossed aside like a rag doll.

He heard her scream his name through the pounding of his skull, thick with desperation. Gritting his teeth, he lifted his head then shook it to clear the blurry shapes from his vision – looking for a flash of blonde hair or a blue dress. “Star?” he can’t find her. Why can’t he find her?

Cruel laughter that chilled him to his core had him looking up – eyes widening with horror at seeing Star looking so small in the creature’s large tight grasp.

_No._

She was struggling but getting tired, her breath coming out in wheezes as his came out in ragged pants – a crushing pressure in his chest.

_NO._

He was on his feet, but her kicking had stopped, her blue eyes rolling back while the monster _smiled_ …

There was only red.

**_“STARRR!”_ **

He doesn’t remember much of what happened between him delivering a rage fueled kick to the creatures back to a small, familiar warm hand grabbing his wrist. Doesn’t care to even though his fists are bloody, bruised messes with the rebel being in a similar state.

He only cared that Star was there, _breathing_ blue eyes soft as she looked at him. Only cared about the slight smile that tugged up her lips as his eyes flickered over her for injuries –

Only cared about how he was going to help heal the ugly bruises that were blooming on her arms. About how he could make the creature who did that pay again… 

Murderous thoughts were suddenly interrupted by firm feather soft kisses pressed to each of his knuckles, leaving what felt like mini suns under his skin with each one. They pull him in towards her, the brightest of all

(After all, the moon can’t shine without the sun)

His eyes flickered down her mouth, tinged with a bit of red from his blood, the urge to close the small bit of distance left between them growing.

He wanted to kiss her. Longer, this time. Wanted to breath her in, try to give some of the warmth she gave him back. Wanted to show that he was _hers,_ completely. That all he wanted more than _anything_ was for her to be _his_ too.

_His._

But he didn’t want it to be mistaken this time. Didn’t want her to think it was hastiness, or a product of high-strung emotions. So he pressed his mouth to her forehead, inhaled her scent mixed with blood and dirt with only a small whisper giving hint to his feelings. “All right, my shinning Star.”

* * *

A few hours later, Marco stands under the near boiling shower spray, barely noticing the sting of his busted knuckles or other various scrapes and cuts on his body as he watches the grime vanish down the drain. _‘Shit, I can’t believe I ate pizza like this.’_ Marco thinks absentmindedly, nose wrinkling.

Turning off the water, he shivers slightly as he steps out of the shower, grabbing his towel to wipe the water from his skin so that he can put on the pair of boxers and sweats he had left on the counter. Feeling a bit warmer, he rubs the towel on his head with one hand while the other wipes the steam from the mirror – wincing as he takes in the array of bruises expanding from the right side of his torso to his back in various shades and colours. Twisting around slightly so he can see more of his back, Marco bites down on his lip at seeing the amount of red- scrapped skin.

“Star’s going to kill me for not going to the medical center.” He mummers, his gut twisting when he imagines the Princess’s reaction when she catches sight of these injuries.

The Princess who’s going to be here any minute to watch a movie.

Sighing, he drops the towel to reach for the large jar of healing salve that’s soon going to need another refill. He twitches in slight discomfort when the cool cream is slathered on to the bruised area of his chest, getting onto his knuckles in the process but continues until his front is done. Twisting once more, he manages to rub some cream into his shoulder when he hears the familiar sound of his door being kicked open.

“Marcooo!” Star sing-songs making a slight smile tug up the corners of his lips as he hears her bounding into his room. “Marco?”

“In here Star,” He replies, smile fading as his eyebrows furrowed, tongue sticking out as he tried to reach just a _little_ lower… “I’ll just be a minute.”

“OKAY!”

Exactly 60 seconds later, he’s unsurprised when he hears several bags being dropped onto his bed closely followed by footsteps coming towards the bathroom door. Still, he can’t help but smile again when she waits another minute despite the energy that must be coursing through her before knocking. “Are you dressed?” She asks the excitement from earlier over-shadowed by concern that makes him both feel warm and guilty.

Giving up on reaching the spot, he lets out a gust of air, eyes on the mirror. “Yeah Star, you can come –“

The door is practically flung open as the Princess strides in, long blonde hair swaying almost to the hem of her night-dress. She halts, and he watches with a slight wince as her blue eyes widen as they flicker over his back. They meet his through the mirror, narrowing when he grins sheepishly. “Marco Diaz –“

“I know, I know.” He sighs, turning to face her, looking down through his bangs. “You told me so.”

Her mouth closes, her eyes remaining narrowed as they assess the injuries on his chest despite the pink blossoming on her cheeks. The sight brings him a bit of pride; while he is nowhere near as ripped as his older body, he certainly wasn’t ‘squishy’ anymore thanks to his training and a few growth spurts.

Noticing his knowing grin, Star rolls her eyes even though the colour in her cheeks darkens considerably. “C’mon Diaz,” she sighs, her hand wrapping around his firmly to pull him into his bedroom. “This is why I came prepared.”

“Prepared?” He questions, a frown pulling down his lips when she stops in front of his bed letting go of his hand to push him down into a seated position.

“Stay.” She orders when he opens his mouth again, a pleased smirk on her lips when he shakes his head but listens.

Jumping onto the bed beside him, he hears her searching through the various bags before letting out a triumphant “Aha!” A tap on his shoulder has him turning to his right, only to see Star beaming at him waving various packaging in her hands around. “Bandages, heat-pads and other…stuff all from the palace’s medical center!” She exclaims, her smile growing larger with each word when he stares in confusion. “Also to make it even better, _stickers!”_ She flourishes those brightly covered packages with extra glee bouncing on her knees.

Marco’s speechless. A familiar warmth coming alive in his stomach. “You got that stuff for me?”

"Duh, I saw you take those hits Marco. I knew your knuckles were the least of your problems.” She states factually, rolling her eyes.

“B-but…” He flounders, gesturing wildly with his hands. “You didn’t force me to go to the medical center! You always do that!”

The look she gives him is decidedly unimpressed, “You mean when you can barely walk? Or when your arm is twisted the wrong way? Which has been happening _a lot_ lately, yeah.” Marco bites down on his lip, brown eyes glancing down at the comforter when he notices the flash of pain in her dark blues despite her factual tone. “But today, since you were walking and talking without screaming in pain, I figured it wasn’t so serious that you _had_ to go to the medical center which you would probably just escape again anyway, and I could help you out instead.”

Marco’s head snaps up at that, heart pounding as his cheeks heated up. “W-wait…are you…?” He hesitates, going back over her words to make sure he wasn’t misunderstanding anything before finishing. “Are you offering to be my nurse?”

“Yep!” Star confirms with a firm nod, blue eyes peaking through her bangs as she asks more quietly, “Is that okay?”

Marco worries a little about the speed his heart is thumping at. Monsters: no problem. Crazy, murderers: pft – whatever! A million Hekapoos: bring it! Star Butterfly, freshly showered wearing a nightdress sitting on his _bed_ asking to nurse him back to health with those big gorgeous eyes? Deadly, in the most beautiful sense of the word.

He wonders if she can hear it when her eyebrows furrow when he’s been quiet for too long, shuffling closer to put a gentle hand on his arm. “Marco?”

Marco opens his mouth to reassure her that it's ok and that she is honestly the best person _ever –_

Nothing comes out. Those eyes are pulling him into her orbit again, or maybe just reminding him that he’s _always_ been there entwined with her forever.

He sees her eyes cast down, feels her grip on him loosen.

_N_ o.

He grabs her hand before it pulls away entirely, smiling shyly when she looks up with parted lips. Entwining their fingers, he scoots closer so that they are nearly nose to nose again, elated to see the familiar pink tinging her cheeks. “You can, if you let me check out your bruises.” He bargains softly, not trusting himself to try speaking any louder. watching in awe as her cheeks darkened – a light shine appearing in her hearts.

“That’s – fair.” Her voice is slightly higher than normal even though it’s also quieter and he stares in awe at the light shine that appears in both her cheek marks. “But I get to check you first because it was my idea!”

“Okay.” He agrees easily, his free hand lifting to rest on the curve of her neck.

“And you better sit still and do everything I ask!” She adds, pointing a finger at his chest

His smile widens, showing teeth: “Of course.”

She pauses, features softening. “And Marco –“

“Yes Star?” He chuckles, brown eyes gazing into hers –

Only to widen when a pair of soft lips collide clumsily, _beautifully_ with his. What must be a thousand little suns in his stomach explode at the contact – sending rays of warmth throughout Marco’s whole body. Eyes fluttering shut, he sinks into the sensation, tilting his head so that their mouths can move in better sync. He hears a familiar contented hum, _feels_ it vibrate through him as a soft, warm hand slides over the back of his neck into his hair, tugging at the strands.

He groans, wanting to press closer _,_ his lips parting so that he can brush his tongue against plump candy tasting ones…

There’s a delightful gasp, then the less pleasant sensation of her pulling away.

Eyes flying open, he’s about to apologize only to nearly choke at seeing her sapphire orbs gazing at him with unashamed _passion_ even as ragged breaths escape her mouth.  Noticing that he’s looking back, a small smirk curls her mouth. “If you’re good for Dr. Butterfly,” She says with an air of calm that has him gaping, then groaning once more when she tugs at his hair once more playfully, leaning in close. “You can get another kiss, if you want.”

“O-okay.” He stammers, sure he’s redder than his hoodie by the way she’s smiling cheekily, blue eyes shining.

“Good.” She declares, swooping to the side to press a quick kiss to his cheek before she’s pulling away – thankfully keeping their hands entwined despite it being an added hinderance as she sorts through the bags once more. “Did you pick the movie you wanted to watch yet?”

Feeling the warmth from earlier settling comfortably in his skin, a fond grin tugs up Marco's lips. Rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand, he places his head on her shoulder, uncaring of how her hair tickled his nose. “Yeah, I did. I think you’ll love it.”

"Like you love me?" She teases. The rustling of the bags suddenly stops, her body stiffening in realization. 

Smiling, he presses a kiss to her shoulder,  "Naw, there's no movie anyone could love _that_ much."

"Not even a Mackie Hand classic?" She questions softly.

Lifting his head, he sees her gazing at him with wide eyes. "No, not even a Mackie Hand classic."

"Oh Marco," She huffs, rolling her eyes despite the bright glowing of her hearts.  "You had to one up me."

"Just saying how it is, Star." He whispers when her nose brushes against his, beautifully intense blue eyes to warm brown.

Her slight smile is radiant, "And I say, as your Doctor, that you're amazing Marco Diaz, my wild man."

"My shinning Star." He quips back, seeing her smile widen before it's pressed against his. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, so that’s it for this fic. I hope I did alright with the tenses in this one cause they were kind of annoying with the back and forth, so if I missed anything that you guys catch feel free to let me know! Also, just to clarify Star and Marco are around 17 in this fic just because I feel like they would need a bit of time to sort out their emotions for each other.
> 
> Anyway, as always feedback is greatly appreciated!  
> *Thank you everyone for your kudos, hits, and reviews!

**Author's Note:**

> *So yeah, I changed the ending because I felt it was a little rushed and I'm also writing a 2nd part that should be up in a few days and this goes better with it. :)
> 
> So...I just recently started getting into this fandom and holy shit I love it in all it’s awesome weirdness filled with important messages and character development!! Not only that, but I actually found a pretty much cannon straight couple I ship hardcore. Seriously guys, for me this is huge, so I had to write something for this fandom involving Starco. I hope I did it justice.
> 
> Also, I was halfway through writing this when I found the song I Scare Myself by Beth Crowley in my youtube suggestions and it’s freaky how much it fits this fic. Check it out if you want!


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